Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-12-23


somehow, seemed 10 him necessary part OF
the procedure, bad taken more time than he
imagined: and when he returned to the
billiard room with the spoils, the bank had
already closed its doors.
This was a shrcwd knock "a piece of
business had been neglected. He heard these
words in his faith RS tronchant voice, and
tremblcd, and then lodged the thought.
After all, who was to know, He must carry
G4OO about with him till Monday, when the
neglect could be surreptitiously repaired; and
meanwhile, he was free to pass the afternoon
on the encirclng dvan of the billiard room,
smoking his pipe, slipping pint of ale, and
ENJOYING to the mast head the modest pleas
ures of admiration.
None can admire like n young man. Of all
youths passions and pleasures, this is the
most common and least alleged; and every
flash of Alans black eyes; every aspect OF
his curly head; every graceful reach, every
easy, stand off attitude of waiting; aye, and
down to his shirt sleeves and wrist links, were
seen by John through luxurious glory. lie
valued himself by the possession OF that royal
friend, Rugged himself upon the thought, and
swan in warm azure; his own defects, like
vanquished difficulties, becoming things on
which to plume himself. Only when he
thought of Miss Mackenzie there fell upon
his mind a shadow of regret; that young lady
was worthy of better things than plain John
Nicholson, still known among schoolmates
by the derisive name of Fatty and he felt,
if he could chalk a cue, or stand at ease, with
such careless grace as Alan, he could ap-
proach the object of his sentiments with n
less crushing sense of inferiority.
Before they parted, Alan made proposal
that was startling in the extreme. He would
be at Colettcs that night about II, he said.
Why should not John como there and get the
money! To go to Colette's was to see life,
indeed; it was wrong; it was against the
laws; it partook in very dingy manner, of
adventure Were it known, it was the sort
of exploit that dsconsdered a young man
for good with the more serious classes, but
gave him "A standing with the riotous And
vet Colette's was not n hell; it could not
come, without vaulting hyperboe, under the
rubric of gilded saloon and, if it was sin
to go there the sin was merely local and mu-
nicipal Colette Whose name | do not know
how to spell, for l was never in epistolary
communication with that hospitable outlaw
was simply an unlicensed publican, who gave
suppers after II at night, the Edinburgh hour
Of closing If you belonged to a club, you
could get a much better supper at the same
hour, and lose not jot in public esteem But
if YOU lacked that qualification, and were
an hungered or inclined toward conviviality
Mt unlawful hours, Colettes was your only
port You were very i'll supplied. The COM
pany was not recruited from the senate or
the church, though the bar was very well
represented on the only occasion on which
flew in the face of my COuntrys laws, and,
taking my reputation in my hand, penetrated
into the grim supperhouse. And Coette's
frequenters, thrillingly conscious of wrong
doing and that two handed engine the
policeman at the door, were perhaps in
clined to somewhat feverish excess. But the
place was in no sense II very bad one; and
it is somewhat strange to me, at this distance
of time, how it had acquired its dangerous
repute
In precisely the same spirit as man may
debate a project to ascend th. Matterhorn OF
to cross Africa, John considered Alan's pro.
posal and, greatly daring, accepted it. AS
he walked home, the thoughts of this ex-
cursion out of the safe places of life into
| the wild and arduous, stirred and struggled
| in his Imagination with the image of Miss
| acknowledgements and yet kindred
thoughts, for did not each imply unusual
| tightening of the pegs of resolution. did not
| each WOO him forth and warn him back again
| into himself!
Between these two considerations, at least
he was more than usually moved; and wher
he got to Randolph Crescent, he quite forgot
the E400 in the inner pocket of his great
coat, hung up the coat, with its rich freight
upon his particular pin of the hat stand; anc
in the very action sealed his doom.